Arizona weekly citizen., 1887-03-19
ANCIENT ARIZONAyS.
Gratifying Success of the smIthsonIan Archaeological Expedition.
 CTempe Nevs.)

L the great Toltec occupation of the va
 ley and We are pleased to chronic ; their success beyond most sanguiue e, | pectations.
 | Owing to the fact that many of tt
 ruins have been already disturbed b
 vsndal hands. Mir. Cushing chose, as th
 scene of his first labors, 6 group lyin 2 nenr the Good wins ranch, some seye
 miles southeast of Tempe. These stru, , lures. though perhaps not as rich i
 srckse llogical treasure as others nor c
 such imposing size. are nevertheless : more adapted for critical research, i
 the fact that they appear to have beei
 untouched since their ancient inhabi
 tants fOFsook them The ledge edifc
 has. so far, received but little attention
 work being chiefly prosecuted on wha
 msy have been An annex thereto, lyinI
 tO the northwsrd some hundred or nor,
 feet. The larger was doubtless five ol
 six stories ID height and covered larg,
 expgnse of ground; it is thought to have
 been the seat of government, the citsdeI
 of the section thereabOut. The smaller
 was of not more than two or three stor-
 ies and vas, in the light of what hs.
 been uuearthed, ed,unquestionablys temple They were built of adobe only, nodded
 without straw, both hand and box made. and the work was most thoroughly done, h outline they were terr.ced, present | ing remarkable features of similarity to the great pyramids of Mexico and to the structures of the Zunis to-day.
 Mir. Cushiug's hypothesis vks that | these people were, If not identical with, at least closely allied to the ancesscrs of the Zuhis-In fact, constituted a portion of the great Toltec family. This has been most abundsntly proven, for in almost every relic unearthed are to be l found points bearing out the resem- blance. MT. Gushing. in his yesrs of residence among the Zutis, rose to the first order of their priesthood and was admitted so the knowledge of the most profound mysteries ofIthe symbolic wor- ship. The ceremonies are beautiful in their nature, every word and motion having its worth and every vessel it's peculiar fO: m and use. To the priesthood alone, as the sole pOssessors of spiritual lore and legendary history, are these meanings clear and these symbols sus- gestive. Our visitor, then, is of all men the most fitted to explain, classify and extract the hidden meanings of the me mOrials that have been uneGrthed.
 He found ID the temple many sacred vessels and articles exactly the same ss those used by the priesthood of Zuni, of today. The sacred symbolic war clubs were found together. as they are 10 be found m Zuni and the same ceremonial cigarettes unearthed. These latter are small cane tubes, elaborately wrapped with woven cloth and proiusely decorat- ed; on them were cords tied with mys- terIOus knots, the secret of which lay with the priesthood alone. They were offered, with tobaccO, in sacrifice 10 the God of the Evening Star. The plume stick of priest was found. Those are small decorated twigs. smoothed of and shRrpened a. one end. and are precisely the length of the owners palm and mid die finger. The ceremonial point of the priests was in fair condition, as we'll As the peculiar sea shells always used in the temples for distributing the sacred water. Among other characteristic iet- ishes. sn owls head was unearthed, carved from rock; and 6 great treasure indeed IS exhibited ID a great shell or horn. bls ga Rs a rallying signal to the people.
 We spoke above of the WAT clubs. These should more properly be termed maces, for they are in form and usage similar tO the msces of medieyal times The striking portion consists of a we'll rounded ball. of perhaps two pounds weight, made of tuia or scorie; It was prepared for use by first covering it with n pitchy compound and clay; It was tightly enwrspped with skin and, sus- r,av1a1 hxy a khnnor FrnDn a rNn1a hard, it makes a dangerous weapon.
 QuiIe a curiosity Is noted Tn 8 small slate, very similar in form to & child's of one piece, the protecting rslsed rim being a portion of the slate slab.
 In pottery. the discoveries were e1- tensiye and valuable. On Monday was uueartbed an almost perfect urn, and oD # NIT. Cushing exhibited 10 us the proofs of its TOltec origin. Around Il ran the unmistakable "line of life" with the two white breaks invariably to bs found on its black ring. the lower DOT ton of the jar was terrscelike in the de- sign of painting and st regular intervals appeared the typical eye of the Znhi pottery. Many fragments were slsC shown, all possessing the same peculiar ty of ornament. These markings are controlled by superstitiOus reasoning understood and upheld by the Zuh priesthood of to-day. All vessels to b., used as reoeptscles for any form of food have thus been made from time im memorial. Mir. Cushing accounts ID 6 very simple manner for the great amount of broken pottery that IS scaitre d throughout the valley. He states thst m Zlni, at regular periods. . sacraifce of broken pottery and of baskets is offered tS certain deity. A stated number are taken from each household. and 1t can readily be imagined that, with the densr population of this section, the pot break ing day brought disaster to many thou sands of esrthern vessels.
 The number of inhabitants who pso pied the valley is at present beyond con lecture. IL IS thought .hst they were not a warlIke people; they titled ihe soil but resided m pueblos. and all signs indic8te that they were but an sgr1cul- tgrRl race, ever standing on the defen- sive. A high grade of civilization exist ed. Their houses were large s1d well constructed and their fields were water d by fsr-spreading and ingenious sys- tenn of irrigating canals. Great economy was no doubt exercised with the vster, for we find in many places, particularly on .he northern side of the mess. elsbor- ate systems of terraces. The only cloth staple produced was cotton. To bsccO was grown and used in eere mouials,
 From the fact that even most sacred articles are now 10 be found covered with the debris of fallen buildings. IL Is safe tO infer that the structures now un der investigation were OVerthrovn by some violent volcanic disturbance, and that the abandonment of the country was due tO the same natural cstss- trOphe.
 The archaeological student has indeed reason 10 rejoice in the success of these investigations, which trace back for us a rich volume of ancient American his tOTy,